


Now memories are blurred, and their faces are obscured, but I still know the words to this song

by YoukaiMinori



Series: NatP Skyverse [2]
Category: Sky: Children of the Light (Video Game)
Genre: ...from an abridged series of MLP:FiM lol, Angst, Angst and Feels, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst and Tragedy, Death, Feels, Gen, Mercy Killing, No beta we die like skykids in Eden, Yes the title is a reference of a song
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-01
Updated: 2020-11-01
Packaged: 2021-03-09 00:41:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,616
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27342163
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/YoukaiMinori/pseuds/YoukaiMinori
Summary: Shíra fulfills her duty to save her veteran friends.
Series: NatP Skyverse [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1996633
Comments: 8
Kudos: 12





	Now memories are blurred, and their faces are obscured, but I still know the words to this song

_ "You must have come all this way for a reason." _

Alef blinked, did he accidentally take a nap? 

_ "I only can guess that you're looking for a ride." _

Who was singing? Wait, is Shíra singing? Seems like it. 

_ "Views may seem nice from the edge of the ocean, yet wouldn't you soon like to see the other side?"  _

"Shíra?"

Alef got up from the grassy ground where he lied, wind swept the salty tang of the crystal blue ocean that surrounds them. He blinked once, twice, before realizing he and Shíra weren't alone in one of the many identical islets the children called Home.

Voices, he could hear Shíra speaking with someone. He could not recognize their voice. 

"Shír—" Whatever words he was about to say were pushed back behind his throat as whatever he was feeling at that time were forgotten in favor of horrified shock from what he had witnessed with his own two eyes. 

Corrupted stars, and it was a really bad case. 

"N-Nameless…" The voice croaked, pain evidently heard, raspy and breathy, as if it's almost hurt to just speak up. 

"Name...less, h-help us…" One of the corrupted stars spoke up, well, the only one who could speak. A shorter veteran's eyes were hollow, emptied sockets as spiked tendrils of the dark plant grew from them. Golden-colored ichor mixed with blackness oozed out, still fresh and dropping out of them. She was being carried by her partner who isn't so well either. 

The taller veteran had blackened flowers and vines growing in the cracks in his skin, tightly strangling around his neck. The veteran's lips chipped, broken like porcelain as dark plants bloomed viciously around the area.

"W-we should have…" The shorter veteran coughed, the darkness-ichor mixture dribbled from her mouth before continuing what she was saying, "...followed your advice. I-I'm so sorry w-we doubted you."

Shíra turned to the horrified Alef behind her. Her smile ever so present, so serene, despite the terrifying scene right in front of her. "Alef, I'd like you to meet Cian and Sheena. They're my friends." She spoke, hands gesturing which names belonged to whom. 

Cian had his hair sideways, his cape tattered, in the shape and color reminiscent of blue raindrops, clipped by the emblem of the lightseeker spirits and indigo-colored pants fastened by a sash. 

Sheena, the shorter veteran, wore a pair of baggy gray pants. Her cape fluffy and Indigo in coloration, and her hair styled similarly to one of Elder Lamed's followers: It was long and a lock loosely tied on her side.

"Shíra, is there anything my power can do to help?" The prince asked, there was something he could do, right? 

But she only shook her head, "No, I'm sorry." She responded, before looking back to the taller veterans in front of her. "Cian, are you still able to carry yourself and Sheena to Eden?" 

Cian silently nodded, each movement made him wince in pain. Sheena only patted his head gently. 

Shíra only nods back in response, then back to Alef. "Let's go."

* * *

The trek towards the peak of Eden was laborious for the four-man team. Shíra held Cian's hand all the way through, while Alef remained in the back, watching with worried intent as they scaled the corruption-infested capital once again.

Each step they took, he could hear Cian's (or was that Sheena's?) increasingly pained groans, but they trudged on forward. 

Swerve to the left, avoid that stone. Hide under the cover, away from the cyan-colored light..

Swerve to the right, avoid the growing corruption. Hide behind the pillar, the final pass. 

"Cian!?" Shíra piped up. Alef only could watch in horror as the tall veteran collapsed on the sandy slope. Wheezing then finally coughing out a mixture of golden ichor mixed with black. 

"Oh no, no no no nononono—" Sheena weakly shook his shoulders, but he was barely breathing as he hit the ground, "Cian, please, we're almost there. Cian, please g-get up—" Her voice was barely a whisper, dragging her paralyzed legs off behind him.

"It's alright Sheena," Shíra only ran her hand behind Sheena's back as a small gesture of comfort, trying to calm down the increasingly panicking veteran, "He did his best, I'll take it from here." 

"N-Nameless, please save him." Sheena hiccuped, grasping onto Shíra's red cape as tears rolled from her cheeks, "Please, we are so close. T-there must be a way—"

Alef's heart sank, he could practically feel Cian's light slowly fading away. Pure light converted bit by bit into darkness, like a predator coiling around its prey to snuff its life out in the most painful way. 

"Don't panic." Shíra spoke, "Stars usually don't last longer in the final pass." Her eyes had such a distant look, almost clouded as if she's remembering memories long gone in the past. 

It was pure silence between the three of them, only the sound of the dark dragon circling at the entrance of the corridor and the harsh storm winds filled their ears. 

Before a soft gasp came from Sheena, like a dawning realization came to her, "Nameless…" She trailed off, "Is this where…?"

"Everyone, yes." A single nod to firmly place her answer, "Tiffy, Sefri…"

"Mako, Moka."

"Even Lou, Maryl, and Lamine…?"

She was silent for a few moments, before capturing her words. 

"Maryl and Lamine fell in Daylight Prairie, but they're up there with everyone now."

Alef's eyes widened.  _ Her singing _ . 

He heard her sing back in the island of Sanctuary. He first thought she was just singing out of random habit, but no, he had just realized now 

_ She was singing for them. _

"I'm so sorry—" 

Shíra gave a tight hug to Sheena, "It's alright." She spoke as she squeezed the slowly dying veteran in her arms, "Someone has to do this, and I gladly will do this, so no one has to."

The braided star let go as she laid the weakened veteran to the ground besides Cian, her hands then went to the two pockets on the side of her pants. 

One hammer, made of stone. 

One chisel, stained with old ichor mixed with black on its glinting steel surface. 

"Shíra, what are you—" 

"Alef, look away." She commanded, not a quiver in her voice but he could see primal fear in her eyes. Her cheeks stained by tear streaks that fell from her eyes. 

She did not look at him, her gaze straight to death. 

"Sheena, you and Cian no longer need to suffer from your corruptions any longer." The chisel hovered just above Sheena's flickering crystal on her chest, hammer dangerously raised in the air.

"Ascension awaits at the end.”   
  


She aimed it straight and true to the chisel's handle.   
  


“I’ll miss you.”

_ Now memories are blurred, and their faces obscured. _

Alef instinctively looked away, eyes closed shut as her singing voice soon began to fill the surrounding area.

_ But I still know the words of this song. _

“I’ll say good-bye to you on the other side.”

The hammer fell quick as the wind. Hitting the butt-end of the chisel with a single, hard tap.

The sound of an object shattering once—then twice, echoed in the lonesome capital. 

And then, silence once more.    
  
Not even a sound of pain was heard from the now unmoving bodies, as pieces of darkness overtook the now hollowed bodies and turned them into lifeless statues.Their chests that once held shining crystals now empty and broken. The grayed pieces scattered on the ground, as both corruption and ichor oozed out from the wound.

"I'm so sorry you had to hear that, Alef." She hiccuped, sobbing as she gently clutched in her ichor-stained hands: two winged lights. 

The very soul and essence of what once Cian and Sheena, glowing so softly and weakly, almost flickering. 

"Shíra…" No more words he could say, as he pulled her into a gentle hug. Muttering words to comfort the crying star in his arms.

He would say it will be okay. 

But will she truly be okay? He had heard tales of the child of light that sings when a corrupted star is nearby, and then brings them salvation. 

But now he had realized earlier on that the reaper the children spoke of was none other than Shíra herself.

He can't fathom how much ichor she had spilled with her own two hands; the sacrifices she had made to save everyone she knew. The sense of dread she felt repeating over and over to end their lives in order to save them.

"I will never be able to understand the pain and terror you feel every time you have to do this," He finally spoke up, "But, do know, that you don't have to do this all alone now." 

"Alef…"

"Yes?" 

"Thank you, I've always felt detached and alone." She buried her face on the crook of his neck, "I don't know how many sleepless nights I've had after I return here back here."

"I promise, you won't have to be alone any longer." Alef only tightened the hug between them, before letting go to give the girl a small kiss on the tip of her nose.

"Let's not make your friends wait any longer, we still need to go back home ourselves." He gave her a small smile, as a final reassurance. 

Shíra nods, wiping away the stray tears that rolled from the side of her face.

She merely nodded as she clutched the winged lights in her arms, gently surrounding the two of them in a hug as she closed both her eyes shut. Lightly as she could, fearing they would shatter into nothingness.   
  
“We’ll see you both on the other side.”

**Author's Note:**

> This was supposed to be done yesterday for Halloween.
> 
> I've namedropped the title "Singing Reaper" for Shíra back in the main fanfic Nameless and the Prince, but I never really elaborated it further until now why she was called as such \\(oⲱo)/
> 
> Cian and Sheena reference: https://twitter.com/YoukaiMinori/status/1322488483357749248  
> Cian has a star-shaped lightseeker cape and the rhythm pants with a sash on the side  
> Sheena has fluffy rhythm cape and prophecy hakama pants


End file.
